Higher-Order Duality in Nondifferentiable Minimax Programming with Generalized Type I Functions

A unified higher-order dual for a nondifferentiable minimax programming problem is formulated. Weak, strong and strict converse duality theorems are discussed involving generalized higher-order (F,α,ρ,d)-Type I functions. The research of second author was supported by the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India, under the NBHM Post Doctoral Fellowship Program 40/9/2005-R&D II/2398.     

Effects of plasticiser on the lithium ionic conductivity of polymer electrolyte PVC-LiCF3SO3

Solid polymer electrolyte films based on poly(vinyl chloride)-lithium triflate (PVC-LiCF₃SO₃) have been prepared by the solution-cast technique in various concentrations. The film with the highest conductivity was used to prepare plasticised polymer electrolyte films by using poly(ethlene glycol) (PEG) of different molecular weights, i.e., 200, 400 and 600 gmol⁻¹. These films were prepared to study the effects of addition of low molecular weights PEG on the lithium ionic conduction of the PVC based polymer electrolyte. The films were characterised by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and Fourier transform infrared-spectroscopy (FTIR). Results indicate that the molecular weight has an inverse effect on the conductivity and this has been accounted for by FTIR. Paper presented at the International Conference on Functional Materials and Devices 2005, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, June 6 – 8, 2005.     

Generation of dark hollow beam by use of phase-only filtering

A simple but effective scheme to generate dark hollow beams is proposed by use of phase-only filtering and optical Fourier transform. A Gaussian beam of fundamental mode is modulated by a pre-designed phase mask, which is a piecewise modification of an axicon lens, and followed by a Fourier transform to generate an ideal dark hollow beam at the focal plane. This method has an advantage that the total energy of the beam is conserved under paraxial approximation. Numerical calculations are provided to show the validity of the proposed scheme.     

An algorithm based on the regularization and integral mean value methods for the Fredholm integral equations of the first kind

In this paper, an algorithm based on the regularization and integral mean value methods, to handle the ill-posed multi-dimensional Fredholm equations, is introduced. The application of this algorithm is based on the transforming the first kind equation to a second kind equation by the regularization method. Then, by converting the first kind to a second kind, the integral mean value method is employed to handle the resulting Fredholm integral equations of the second kind. The efficiency of the approach will be shown by applying the procedure on some examples.     

Transfer of radioactivity from soil to vegetation in Rechna Doab, Pakistan

In Rechna Doab, samples of the most common vegetation, perennial grass Desmostachya bipinnata (dab), were collected along with soil samples from 29 sites. Natural radioactivity of 22?Ra, 232Th/22?Ac and ??K was measured by using high purity germanium-based gamma ray spectrometer. Activity concentration levels of 22?Ra, 232Th/22?Ac and ??K in soil were found to be 46.8 ± 6.2 (36.0-57.6), 61.4 ± 5.9 (48.2-73.2) and 644.8 ± 73.9 (537.7-868.4) Bq kg?1 (dry mass), respectively, and those in vegetation were 2.74 ± 1.70 (1.00-6.39), 2.24 ± 0.59 (1.56-2.61) and 172.72±113.37 (53.14-469.24) Bq kg?1 (dry mass), respectively. The measured values of the activity concentration in vegetation are comparable with some other international data. Calculated soil to vegetation transfer factors of 22?Ra, 22?Ac and ??K were 0.06 ± 0.03 (0.02-0.14), 0.04 ± 0.01 (0.03-0.04) and 0.26 ± 0.16 (0.09-0.69). The mean outdoor absorbed dose rate in air for the area under study was determined as 8.22 nGy h?1 and the mean indoor absorbed dose rate in air was 11.52 nGy h?1. The total annual effective dose to the general public from the vegetation was found to be (0.02-0.16) mSv, which is below the recommended limit value of 1 mSv y?1 for the general public. The dab vegetation under study was found to be radiologically safe for the population and environment.     

Scalar Tensor Cosmology With Kinetic,Gauss-Bonnet and Nonminimal Derivative Couplings and Supersymmetric Loop Corrected Potential

We discuss a particular four-dimensional cosmology based on non-minimal scalar tensor theories characterized by a supersymmetric loop corrected potential and a Hubble parameter defined as a function of the scalar field. Power-law solutions are obtained in the FRW background giving rise to acceleratedly expanding universe characterized by a scale factor and a scalar field depending both on the non-minimal coupling parameter $\xi$. Based on SNeIa data and on Hubble data X-ray gas mass fraction measurements, we find $0.116<\xi <0.225$ which results on a universe dominated by vacuum energy.     

Performance improvement of spectral amplitude coding-optical code division multiple access systems using NAND detection with enhanced double weight code

The bit-error rate (BER) performance of the spectral amplitude coding-optical code division multiple access (SACOCDMA) system has been investigated by using NAND subtraction detection technique with enhanced double weight (EDW) code. The EDW code is the enhanced version of double weight (DW) code family where the code weight is any odd number and greater than one with ideal cross-correlation. In order to evaluate the performance of the system, we used mathematical analysis extensively along with the simulation experiment. The evaluation results obtained using the NAND subtraction detection technique was compared with those obtained using the complementary detection technique for the same number of active users. The comparison results revealed that the BER performance of the system using NAND subtraction detection technique has greatly been improved as compared to the complementary technique.     

Synthesis, structural and magnetic properties of the nanocomposite Fe63B23Nd7Y3Nb3Cr1 magnets

The Fe₆₃B₂₃Nd₇Y₃Nb₃Cr₁ nanocomposite magnets in the form of sheets have been prepared by copper mold casting technique. The phase evolution, crystal structure, microstructural and magnetic properties have been investigated in the as-cast and annealed states. The as-cast sheets show magnetically soft behaviors which become magnetically hard by thermal annealing. The optimal annealed microstructure was composed of nanosize soft magnetic α-Fe (19-29 nm) and hard magnetic Nd₂Fe₁₄B (45-55 nm) grains. The best hard magnetic properties such as intrinsic coercivity, _jH_c of 1119 kA/m, remanence, B_r of 0.44 T, magnetic induction to saturation magnetization ratio, M_r/M_s=0.61 and maximum energy product, (BH)_max of 55 kJ/m³ was obtained after annealing at 680 °C for 15 min. The annealing treatment above 680 °C results in non-ideal phase grains growth, which degrade the magnetic properties.     

Preparation and properties of semiconductor CuO nanoparticles via a simple precipitation method at different reaction temperatures

Preparation and properties of CuO nanoparticles as an important p-type semiconductor via a simple precipitation method at different reaction temperatures varying from 10 to 115°C using copper acetate as a starting material have been reported. In addition, we investigated the influence of the ultrasonic irradiation through synthesizing the nanosized CuO at 60°C. Samples were characterized by XRD, FT-IR, SEM, TEM and UV-Vis techniques. XRD patterns of samples were identical to the single-phase pure CuO with a monoclinic structure. FT-IR spectra exhibited sharp peaks at around 519 and 598?cm^?1 which can be assigned to vibrations of the Cu-O bond. Results indicated that properties of samples had great dependence on the temperature and ultrasonic irradiation. The crystallite size and crystallization increased with increasing the temperature from 10 to 115°C. The band gap of samples was estimated to be in the range of 1.9–2.9?eV that is larger than the reported value for the bulk CuO (1.85?eV). This study provides a simple method for the preparation of nanosized CuO with a better surface uniformity and a narrow size distribution. Synthesized CuO samples with adjustable and controllable optical properties make the applicability of copper oxide even more versatile.